Artificial marbles refer collectively to artificial synthetic products prepared by blending natural stone powder and minerals with a resin component (acrylic, unsaturated polyester, epoxy, etc.) or cement and adding various kinds of pigments and additives to the blend so as to realize a natural stone-like texture. Representative artificial marbles include acrylic artificial marbles, unsaturated polyester artificial marbles, and the like.
Acrylic artificial marbles and unsaturated polyester artificial marbles have strength and color tones peculiar to solid materials. Particularly, acrylic artificial marbles show good workability and superior weather resistance. Acrylic artificial marbles are lightweight and nonporous, compared to natural marbles. In addition, acrylic artificial marbles have an elegant color tone, high strength and excellent weather resistance like natural marbles. Furthermore, acrylic artificial marbles show superior workability comparable to wood. Based on these advantages, acrylic artificial marbles can be distinguished from natural marbles.
On the other hand, unsaturated polyester artificial marbles are disadvantageous in terms of poor weather resistance and heat resistance and difficult thermoforming over acrylic artificial marbles. However, since unsaturated polyester artificial marbles have a refractive index similar to that of aluminum hydroxide used as filler, the polymerized products are highly transparent, thus advantageously achieving a natural and deep appearance like natural stone.
In recent years, artificial marbles have been used in various applications, such as top boards, dressing tables, wash stands, tables, wall materials, flooring materials, furniture, interior decorative materials, indirect lighting panels, interior goods, etc.
In general, acrylic artificial marbles have the advantages of graceful appearance and excellent workability, as well as are advantageous in terms of light weight and high strength over natural marbles. Based on these advantages, acrylic artificial marbles are widely used as materials for counter tables and interior decorative goods. However, acrylic artificial marbles have technical limitations in expressing various patterns utilizing simple combinations of single-color chips commonly known in the art, when compared to natural marbles and granite.
Acrylic artificial marbles are commonly prepared by mixing a filler, e.g., aluminum hydroxide, calcium carbonate and silica, a pigment and a curing agent with a syrup of a monomer, e.g., methyl methacrylate, and polymethyl methacrylate, molding the mixture in a mold or a continuous steel belt, and curing the molded mixture.
Pigments and chips are mainly used to provide colors and shapes to artificial marbles. These chips and artificial marbles share the use of main components in common. Single-color pigments are added during preparation of artificial marbles and crushed to allow the final artificial marbles to have various colors and particle sizes.
Conventional chips are predominantly single-color chips in the form of a fine powder or having a size of 2.5 mesh or less. Although various kinds of chips are used depending on the desired colors and the size of the chips is varied, patterns similar to natural marbles are not easily attained. That is, there is a limitation in expressing natural textures due to a difference in the color between base resins of artificial marbles and single-color chips.
According to conventional methods for the preparation of artificial marbles having various colors, various kinds of single-color chips are produced, and mixed with base raw materials so as to display designs of natural granite. However, the designs of the artificial marbles thus prepared are monotonous and unnatural unlike the designs of natural granite. Therefore, conventional combinations of single-color chips have technical limitations in practically realizing patterns inherent to natural stone.